Like Clockwork
| "Like Clockwork" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by The Boomtown Rats | ||||
| from the album A Tonic for the Troops | ||||
| B-side | "How Do You Do?"[1] | |||
| Released | 9 June 1978 (UK)[1] | |||
| Genre | New wave, post-punk | |||
| Length | 3:45 | |||
| Label | Ensign Records (UK) Columbia Records (US) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Bob Geldof - lyrics Pete Briquette and Simon Crowe - music[1] | |||
| Producer(s) | Robert John "Mutt" Lange[1] | |||
| The Boomtown Rats singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Like Clockwork" is a single by The Boomtown Rats. It was the band's first to reach the Top Ten in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 6.[2][3]
Described as "simple, cool",[4] in concerts supporting A Tonic for the Troops, the song's agitated, staccato bassline made it a common show opener. The B-side, "How Do You Do?" was a fast-paced punk/new-wave song, in the mould of the band's earlier work. However, the Irish version of the single, released on Mulligan Records, substituted the B-side with "D.U.N L.A.O.G.H.A.I.R.E", a tongue in cheek samba, discussing the spelling of the band's home town, written Dún Laoghaire but pronounced Dunleary.[5] The latter was later released in the UK as a free flexi disc, distributed by Flexipop in January 1981.[6] "Like Clockwork" was the first song on air broadcast on RTÉ Radio 2, when the station began broadcasting on 31 May 1979, played by Larry Gogan.
Personnel[edit]
- Bob Geldof – vocals, saxophone
- Pete Briquette – bass, vocals
- Gerry Cott – guitar
- Johnnie Fingers – keyboards, vocals
- Simon Crowe – drums, vocals
- Garry Roberts – guitar, vocals
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "Boomtown Rats, The - Like Clockwork (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. June 1978. Retrieved 2014-04-09.
- ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 71. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ^ William Ruhlmann. "The Boomtown Rats | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-04-09.
- ^ "A Tonic For The Troops Album Review". Boomtownrats.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-06-01.
- ^ "The Boomtown Rats Discography". Boomtownrats.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-06-01.
- ^ "The Boomtown Rats - Dun Laoghaire". YouTube. 2011-11-08. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2013-06-01.
